This is The New Yorker Radio Hour, a co-production of WNYC studios and the New Yorker.

Welcome to the New Yorker Radio Hour.

I'm David Remnick.

When I spoke with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. last summer, his candidacy was very much on the fringe of things.

He started that campaign running as a Democrat, but then he started to get a lot of attention from Barry Weiss, Joe Rogen, even Steve Bannon.

Now, running as an independent, Kennedy has confirmed on the ballot in Oklahoma, Utah, and the

swing state of Michigan.

At this point, the question isn't so much whether he could be a spoiler, but whose race he might spoil.

Right now, roughly 30% of all Democratic voters

say they would likely vote for RFK,

and the number on the Republican side

is around 20%.

Kennedy is best known for conspiracy theories and there are lots of them.

Vaccines cause autism. Toxic chemicals might contribute to children becoming transgender.

Drugs like Prozac might cause school shootings.

Anthony Fauchy was behind, and I'm just quoting here, 20-20's historic coup d'etat against Western democracy.

Most members of the Kennedy family have repudiated him entirely.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has never held or run for public office, any public office. He had a career

as a litigator suing corporations and that aligned him with a slice of the Democratic

left. And when I spoke with Robert F. Kennedy, I asked him why he

thought he was the ideal candidate for arguably the most consequential job on the

planet.

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